Best in Books

The award for my best read of 2016 goes to ↓

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier! This book is the perfect mix of confused romance and gothic elements! [my review]

The books I thought I’d love ↓

I wanted to adore Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake SO BAD; alas, I did not at all. It takes a lot to give me the creeps and I just wasn’t freaked out by the plot enough for my liking. [my review]

I absolutely lovedInsanity by Cameron Jace! I dove into this book without having any knowledge of what it’s about and was very pleasantly surprised to learn it’s an Alice in Wonderland retelling.

Being someone who judges books by their covers, I was prepared to dislike Insanity, as I’m not too fond of its cover. Since I kept being drawn to the book and was seemingly haunted by it, I gave it a shot and I’m so glad I did. [my review]

My ultimate recommendation ↓

I can’t recommend Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy enough! While I didn’t read it again in 2016 (it’s been a few years), the book struck such a chord with me that it’s the number one recommendation you’ll get from me.

Of course, I initially decided to read Anna Karenina due to its gorgeous cover, the one for Oprah’s Book Club, which I have posted here.

My favorite new series ↓

The Grisha by Leigh Bardugo is the series I read in its entirety in 2016.

Bardugo’s trilogy sucked me in from the very beginning and didn’t release me until the final page of Ruin and Rising.

I also finally started The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I loved Cinder, bought the rest of the books in the series, and can’t wait to devour them.

Cassandra Clare is another author whose series, The Infernal Devices, I sampled in 2016. I really enjoyed the steampunk elements in Clockwork Angel.

Hmmm…I’d say that The Girl from the Wellby Rin Chupeco surprised me. Reading it certainly made me intensely interested in learning more about Asian folklore; talk about creepy, which is right up my alley!

OTP of the year ↓

I usually don’t find much interest in OTPs, but this year I have to admit that I really enjoyed the flirtation between the charismatic Will Herondale and cool ass Tessa of Clockwork Angel.

Tessa and Will just seem to be made for each other. If I were in Tessa’s shoes, I’d definitely be flirting my heart out with Will, probably the first fictional character I have seriously fallen for!

Favorite non-romantic OTP ↓

Cinder and Iko of The Lunar Chronicles are simply amazing together. Iko and Cinder’s relationship is so true and loyal, the ideal friendship.

Their antics and banter in Cinder cracked me up and I hope Iko continues to make appearances throughout the remaining three books of the series.

Honestly, I don’t know why Iko would just disappear from the books, but, hey, I don’t know yet! 😀

Favorite book by a previously read-by-me author ↓

The Red Pyramid was such a terrific, exciting read. The first book I read by its author, Rick Riordan, was the fabulous Sword of Summer, the opener of the saga of Magnus Chase, in 2015.

I suppose this one has to be The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi. I didn’t get into, or get around to, reading much hype this year.

My newest fictional crush ↓

Since I was introduced to Will Herondale at last via Clockwork Angel, I am nursing a major fictional crush!

The best 2016 debut ↓

The Star-Touched Queenwas a mesmerizing and beautiful read – I was truly blown away by both the story and the writing.

Chokshi’s debut is by far the best ARC I’ve had the privilege of reading and I can’t wait to get hold of the sequel, A Crown of Wishes, in March!

The most vivid setting ↓

The entire Grisha trilogy had my imagination flowing as I pictured each landmark and scene with ease.

From The Fold to the White Cathedral, Bardugo certainly created an amazing backdrop for her wonderful novels.

Reading and grinning ↓

Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander had me grinning ear to ear from cover to cover! It was such a fun find and I’m so glad to have given it a chance.

The most tear-inducing read ↓

Hmmm…none of my reads of 2016 brought tears to my eyes…

The hidden gem ↓

Meet Your Baker wins again! This was such a fun read and it makes me want to read a bunch more cozy mysteries!

The one that crushed my soul ↓

This is a boring answer → I didn’t have my soul split in half as a result of reading this year.

The most unique read ↓

My most unique read of the year was Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige. Among the first retellings I’ve read, I love Paige’s take on Oz and how she twists Dorothy into a wicked, spoiled brat.

The most anger-inducing read ↓

I don’t feel that I read anything controversial this year. But, I suppose of the books I did read, I Am Malala did make me angry because of the plight of Malala’s people at the hands of terrorists.

I really empathize with Malala and am outraged regarding the violence in the Middle East. It’s so sad that so many people have been, and are still being, forced from their beloved home countries by jerks.

My Bookish Blogging Life

My new favorite book blog ↓

THE BOOKKEEPER’S SECRETS 😀

My most amazing book review ↓

It has to be my Insanity review, which was the first I wrote for The Bookkeeper’s Secrets. It’s received the most attention of the whopping two reviews I’ve published so far.

On my former blog, I wrote a personal piece about my struggle with depending on the computer/internet too much. I remember the post receiving a few comments from other bloggers who identified with my feelings.

My favorite bookish event ↓

I really enjoyed the bookish Twitter chats I participated in this year!

The best moment of my blogging life ↓

This year my favorite blogging-related moment came when Lila, the founder of this blog, extended an invitation to become one of her co-bloggers after I experienced some drama (see my next answer).

Lila’s and Claire’s kindness has blown me away, especially since we have different views regarding an array of topics. Both girls are so easy to communicate with and I’m already so proud of how well we work together.

Fun tidbit – all three of us are Sagittarius! I just think that’s cool, random, and wild!

I am honestly honored to be a co-curator of The Bookkeeper’s Secrets and to have found Lila and Claire! YOU LADIES ROCK! 😀

The most challenging moment of my blogging life ↓

This one’s easy – I felt blacklisted after the presidential election. I simply stated my opinion, just like everyone else, on Twitter and was immediately attacked, harassed, and interrogated by people I don’t even know IRL. I was also blocked by probably 100 people.

At the time, this BS seriously crushed my feelings. Now, I realize how ridiculous the whole thing was. I ended up unfollowing all of my former followers, so as not to accidentally strike up a conversation with someone who is no longer interested in being my buddy, all because of my personal ideals.

Sadly, I deleted my beloved blog, The Novel Orange, as I figured no one would visit again. Hell, I’d been ostracized on Twitter, why wouldn’t my blog be boycotted?

I was (and still am) completely disillusioned by the bookish blogging community, which I adore and was so very proud to be a part of. I assumed the group I’d discovered was universally accepting and kind.

While I am truly disappointed in the true colors shown to me by many, I have received heartfelt messages from others who feel the way I do and who sympathize with my situation.

To all of you who have been so supportive – I thank you from the bottom of my heart. ♥ ♥ ♥

My most popular blog post ↓

Since I no longer have The Novel Orange, which I erased in November, I can’t say with absolute certainty what my most popular post of 2016 was.

However, I started the first annual Year-Long Giveaway on my now defunct blog and I’d say it was most likely the most visited post. I remember there being at least 2000 entries in the contest at the time I called it quits.

The post I wish had gotten a little more ♥ ↓

Also at The Novel Orange, I wrote a piece in which I basically dissected the reasons I have a tough time writing negative book reviews. I was hoping for feedback from readers, alas, it wasn’t meant to be so.

Perhaps I’ll write another, similar post…

The best bookish discovery ↓

GIVEAWAYS and blog hops!

Challenge update ↓

I sucked at reading challenges this year!

Goodreads claims I’ve met my reading goal for 2016, which I changed from 50 books to 20 after deleting my original account and opening a fresh one. I was at least 15 books behind my original goal and cheated a bit when I started over on the site.

Along with ditching all of the year-long challenges for which I registered, I failed miserably at the short challenges held throughout the year. I think this was primarily because I, being overambitious, thought I could do every single challenge I came across.

I did better with blogging challenges, though. I had fun with doing a few Bloggiesta rounds and a discussion challenge, which prompted me to get a little more personal on my blog.

In 2017, I’m planning to quite obviously compete with myself in the Goodreads challenge as well as one other year-long challenge. I know I’ll join in on a read-a-thon here and there as well.

I really want to read the Griesha Triology. It looks so good and i have lots of students who have read it. I should be able to talk about it. Ha! I like the way you organized your survey with the photos of books and quotes. Clever. Do you mind me asking? Why did you delete your Goodreads account? It is such a lifeline for me as a reader to keep myself organized. I’d be honored if you would take a peek at my 2016 Book Survey. Thanks so much HeadFullofBooks Book Survey 2016

Hi, Anne! Thanks a bunch! 😀 Well, silly me deleted my Goodreads account without thinking it through – it didn’t take long for me to open a new one! I do really wish I’d thought to backup my reviews from my original account! Oops! Merry Christmas!

I SO can not wait to read Shadow and Bone series!! I almost bought it last week but I had to control my finger because… #broke I hope you’re kind of out of your slump now! I totally know how that feels though because I just got out of one! 😦

I was pretty shocked that people behaved like that just because of the way someone voted. We had that here too-those of us voting for Brexit in the UK were suddenly being called dumb uneducated racists and worse. It was horrible but I was lucky that I have great online friends who didn’t bother what my politics are, just as I respect their politics. It’s disgusting what your so called friends did to you-they don’t deserve your friendship.

Thanks so much for understanding regarding the political stuff. Sounds like the whole Brexit vote stirred up a lot more hostility than I originally thought. It’s just sad that we can’t all express our opinions without being attacked. It made me sad that I lost so many online ‘friends’, but the ones who have stood by me are amazing and I appreciate their support so very much! I’m thrilled you enjoyed reading my answers – I took forever to get this post written! I’m also glad someone else out there isn’t too fond of Anna Dressed in Blood! 😀

It’s always wonderful to see someone discovering Jane Austen! My favourite is Pride & Prejudice, but I would certainly recommend reading her others as well (with the exception, perhaps, of Mansfield Park, which I am not a big fan of).

I also picked Gilded Cage as the 2017 debut I am looking forward to! The whole premise of nobles-have-magic-commoners-do-not sets up an interesting societal structure that lends itself to the whole storyline of revolution.

Thanks so much, Danya! Austen is definitely a new favorite! I have a pretty edition of Mansfield Park, but I am sort of scared of it – it’s thicker than I expected! I’m SO excited to read Gilded Cage! It’s a miracle, but I was approved for an ARC of it today! YAY! Happy reading and thanks for stopping by! 😀